Embracing Big Brother

Some would argue that modern-day technology has made is so that privacy has become somewhat of a luxury. This has been a heavily discussed subject for the past couple of years and it’s only getting a bigger issue that’s subject of more controversy every day.

With the ever-growing landscape of the digital world and with our presence on it, we’re presenting ourselves to the world in countless ways and there are always new platforms that enable to do this. We’re all leaving a huge digital footprint that’s always going to be around. There used to be a time when people would actually have to write on a piece of paper, seal it in an envelope and bring it to the post office. Nowadays we put a picture online and immediately the whole world can see it and share their thoughts on it.

But we never blame ourselves for the “breach of privacy”.

If it’s not the NSA checking in on our Facebook conversations, it’s the FBI tracking our location through our mobile phones all the time. It’s honestly a little selfish that we all think all of our data is collected and analyzed to the fullest. Modern-day technology has definitely made it easier for our activities to be mapped, but we’re also making it easier ourselves. So many people are afraid of Big Brother constantly watching them, but honestly most people don’t have that much to hide. Even if they think they do.

However, now that we’re able to easily share our personal lives with the rest of the world, there’s also a large group of people doing that. As if it was something we’ve always wanted.

Instances where Facebook friends are notified about a pregnancy before the direct family is or where YouTubers are sharing stories so personal and emotional we feel connected to them, are all examples of sharing deeply personal things with the rest of the world. I believe there are boundaries though and I would personally never share any very intimate information on the web in my current position, but there are definitely people who feel the need to do this.

They at times probably feel more connected to the anonymous digital world than they do to their personal environments. And before we judge these people, we must take into account that nobody is the same and that we all handle things in our own way.

The internet and the sharing of content is a beautiful thing and with most beautiful things, it does have a darker side. But luckily a lot of people are focusing on the good and a lot of times the consequence is that they beat the bad. Transparency is important and it enables us to proactively respond to possible hiccups along the way.

I’m not saying go out and share your entire lives with the rest of the world, always be careful with what you do share. It’s mostly people and organizations that have a significant reputation in society that transparency is important though. But there are even people who got to that position by sharing their personal lives with the rest of the world. Think about those vloggers and bloggers that have gotten big by sharing their daily lives.

People like taking a look into the lives of others because it makes them feel connected or they simply find it entertaining.
It is often said that the internet and other digital developments are making the world less social but I feel different about that. It’s connecting everybody with each other, despite their backgrounds. It’s connecting people who normally wouldn’t connect and making it easier for those who have difficulty connecting in the real world.
So again, before we judge we should realize not one person is the same.
And we should respect that.